The Sky Opened Up
by LexusGrey
Summary: Written for Porn Battle XI. Prompt: Cara/Kahlan, rain, dirty, heartbeat, once, competition


Kahlan could not name the precise moment this became a competition, but as she lay in the mud, hair plastered to her face, rain beating down on her entire body, her dress and underthings already soaked through, she knew it had.

Cara walked toward her, drenched to the bone, hair stringy and matted, water dripping from the ends. She had to shout to be heard over the pounding rain and intermittent bouts of thunder. "I love you!" She splashed through mud and puddles, cold seeping through the soles of her boots where they needed mending. She had to fight the wind to get to Kahlan, who had run from her, but given up when she slipped and fell to her knees. Now Kahlan lay on her back, arms wide, staring up at the angry, swirling sky, and Cara intended to reach her before she got up the strength to run again.

"No you don't!" Kahlan shouted back, bringing her arms around herself, salty tears mixing with rivulets of pristine, shining water.

Cara kept on, only a hundred feet away now, head down to keep her whipping hair out of her eyes. Mud squished beneath her boots and she slipped every few steps, but refused to fall, only pushing on harder. "Yes I do!" she yelled as the sky opened up, lighting flashing overhead. "Stop saying that!"

When Cara got closer, Kahlan geared up to run, but the Mord-Sith reached her and pulled her back down, pinning her to the muddy ground and shaking her wrists. "Leave me alone!"

"We shouldn't be out here!" Cara yelled, every word a struggle to make Kahlan hear. "Let me take you inside! We'll talk about it there!"

"You always say that and we never do!" Kahlan yelled back, her throat hoarse. "We never talk about anything!"

"What do you want me to say! I'm not good with feelings, but I love you! Isn't that enough!"

Kahlan fought the hold, but couldn't find purchase enough to free herself, and screamed in Cara's face instead. Her vision was blurred, water mercilessly assaulting her face, getting in her eyes, she had to shut them. The sky lit up again, explosions of white and blue muted behind her closed eyelids.

"Please, you're going to get us killed!"

"I'm not moving until you admit you were wrong!"

"Are you crazy, Kahlan! This is not the time!" Cara continued to yell, angry now, but when the Confessor dissolved into tears, the world froze and nothing else mattered. "I was wrong!" she finally admitted, her throat protesting the prolongued shouting match as well as the words themselves. "I'm sorry! Is that what you want to hear! I'm sorry, Kahlan! I was wrong!"

Kahlan just kept crying, afraid things weren't going to work between her and Cara, and that terrified her. She shivered with the cold.

"You're freezing!" Cara said, lowering her body fully on top of Kahlan's in the mud. She put her lips to Kahlan's ear so she could whisper instead of scream. "Don't cry... I'll do better, I promise..."

Kahlan felt her heart rip in two. Guilt rushed through her at making Cara promise something like that, at making Cara think she wasn't good enough. She cried harder and shook her head.

"Yes, I will," Cara whispered, kissing the shell of her ear. "Now, I'm taking you inside, if I have to throw you over my shoulder, Kahlan Amnell. You'll get sick and I'm no good at playing nursemaid."

Kahlan fought, and Cara did end up throwing her over her shoulder, stalking carefully back to the inn. When she strode through the door with the Mother Confessor draped across her, everyone stared. Or maybe it was because they were filthy dirty and soaking wet. Either way, she really didn't care, and started up the stairs, holding tight to Kahlan's thighs.

"Would you care for a bath?" the innkeeper called after them, eyes wide.

"No," Cara said without turning around, continuing on to their room and tossing Kahlan on the bearskin rug in front of the fire. The white bearskin rug.

"Cara," Kahlan finally said, intending to explain herself, but she was cut off by a very hungry kiss and a woman in dirty leather straddling her waist. The rug was inconsequential; she feared she would never be able to clean the mud from her dress.

Cara pulled back, stared into her eyes, a serious, stern look on her face. "Don't you ever go out in weather like that again, do you understand?" she said gruffly.

"I needed to get away," Kahlan said desperately, her eyes pleading.

"Then you go to Richard's room, or Zedd's, or to the tavern proper. I will not lose you, Kahlan. We fought so hard to be with each other, and I will NOT lose you. Especially not to a fallen tree or a bolt of lightning, do you hear me?"

"You would have followed me," Kahlan said in a tiny voice.

Cara shook her. "Into Richard or Zedd's room? I would not! I followed you because you ran away and put yourself in danger, like a, like a, a stubborn child!" Kahlan's face screwed up, and Cara's voice softened instantly. "Please don't do that again, I was..." she glanced around, as if checking for spying ears, "...scared."

Kahlan's eyes widened, the urge to cry gone. "You were?" she asked, praying Cara wouldn't take it back. She could feel her heartbeat thumping against her ribcage. _This _was what she wanted from Cara. To know she mattered. To know Cara felt things about her, any things.

"Yes," Cara said, smoothing Kahlan's hair out of her eyes, counting the beats of her own heart to make sure it wasn't about to fly out of her chest. "I'm sorry it took you putting yourself at risk for me to... express... things."

"Why didn't you want that bath?" Kahlan asked, changing the subject after a few moments of silence, knowing how uncomfortable it made Cara to talk about feelings. She was glad, though, that even just _once_, Cara had opened up.

"Because you look good dirty," Cara said with a sly smile.

"And you were hoping to get lucky?"

Cara had the good grace to look scolded. "Mhmm."

"At least take off your gloves."

The gloves were off, figuratively and literally, within two seconds, and Cara's hands were busy, hiking Kahlan's skirts up around her waist and tugging off her underthings, gripping her thighs to shove them apart.

Kahlan gasped, and grinned, and helped by spreading her legs wider, burying a dirt-streaked hand in Cara's soaking wet hair. Lips were on her clit and she groaned, arching, welcoming Cara's tongue as it slid inside and licked her like no one else ever had. _Hard_, and wanton and merciless, attacking until she got what she wanted, the Mother Confessor shoving her away roughly and shuddering with release.

Just as Cara was gloating, licking her mouth clean and preparing to undress for bed, Kahlan gripped the crotch of her leathers. _Firmly_. And squeezed.

"Ride my hand," she demanded, rolling the heel of her palm against Cara's clit, urging her lover to rock against her. "If you weren't in those Rahl-damned leathers, I could have my mouth on you, too. Then we'd see who has room to gloat."

"It's not a competition," Cara gasped, grinding onto Kahlan's hand.

But it always was.


End file.
